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Friday, September 30, 2016

Previously onJem Reviewed, Shana left the Holograms to work for a super diva
named Liz Stratton, prompting Jem and the Holograms to find a new drummer. The contest prompted the Misfits to recruit
a new member themselves in the form of British sax player, Jetta. Meanwhile, two semi-finalists have emerged
to join Jem and the Holograms; the shy but sweet Raya, and Craig, who seems to
have a crush on Aja. But when Raya
finds out that Jem is really Jerrica Benton, she's faced with a moral
dilemma...especially when Eric Raymond is promising her anything she wants if
she'll reveal who Jem really is.

Fortunately, as we begin Episode 28 - The Talent
Search, Part 2
- Raya decides that she can't betray Jem's confidence and walks out on
Eric. Of course, she didn't really tell
Eric to go flock himself. Rather, she
says that she'll think about it. Seems
like there's a fighter inside of Raya waiting to get out, but for now that
fighter remains dormant.

At
Starlight Music the following day, Jerrica, Kimber, and Aja are talking about
the big contest which will feature Raya and Craig in a drum duel to determine
which one will win the chance to join the Holograms.The three of them wonder what Shana would think of this and they decide
to invite her to the drum duel.Whoa...way
to rub salt in the wounds, ladies!No
wonder Shana has to be the sensitive one!

Okay, okay...I get that they are doing it to make Shana feel that she is still
a part of their family, which is sweet.
But when Jerrica tries to talk to Shana on the phone, Shana is so busy
with trying to satisfy Ms. Stratton's eight hundred demands that Shana
unintentionally blows her off. Jerrica
shrugs her shoulders and tells Kimber and Aja that she's vurry busy, not
realizing just how much hell Shana is in.

And before you can say "The Devil Wears Prada", Liz Stratton is in
Shana's face about how her co-stars have better outfits than her, and she rips
Shana's designs in half right in front of Shana's shocked face. Liz then tells Shana to make her look better
than everyone because she's Liz Stratton and she's much better than the peons
she works with. Okay, she doesn't
exactly say this, but you know that's what she's thinking. And Shana's thinking that she made the
biggest mistake of her life.

It's another reused song. This time,
it's "Show Me The Way", originally seen in Episode 7. I said before that there is nothing wrong
with the song, but that it lacked a little oomph. I still feel that way about the song, but Shana's confusion over
taking the dream job that turned into a nightmare, and trying to find a way to
come back to the Holograms definitely illustrates the meaning of the song very
well. So far the repeat songs seem to
have better videos for Season 2 as they did with Season 1.

Let's
peek into Misfits Music now, where the Misfits are giving Eric grief over being
unable to convince Raya to spill her guts about Jem. But Eric hasn't given up.
His next target is Craig Phillips, and Eric is determined to make Craig
talk.

Conveniently,
Craig happens to walk into the offices of Misfits Music with Stormer. And if the blue hair on both of them isn't
any clue to the real relationship between Craig and Stormer, I don't know what
else I can do. Turns out that Craig
Phillips is Stormer's older brother.
And Craig volunteers that Stormer's real name is Mary! Yeah, Mary Phillips sounds like either a
folk singer or a member of a Motown group.
No wonder she adopted the stage name of Stormer!

Naturally,
Eric makes the same offer to Craig that he did with Raya the night before, but
Craig instantly tells him to flock off.
And besides, it's not as if Craig even knows Jem's identity anyway.

But
here's where things start to get a little bit mean. And it's new recruit Jetta that seems to get the ball rolling
when she manages to convince Pizzazz and Roxy to tell Stormer that if she
doesn't convince big brother Craig to help them, they will kick her out of the
Misfits. That is really cold. Honestly, Stormer should probably tell them
to flock off too. But Stormer's self-worth
is almost at rock bottom levels, so Stormer pathetically begs Craig to help
Eric. Because Craig loves his sister,
he reluctantly agrees. Okay, I'm gonna
say it. I hate Jetta. I love the actress who plays her, but I hate
Jetta.

Craig's
plan to get Jem's identity involves him going on a date with Aja jogging
through a park, and it seems as though a love connection has been made between
them. Craig admits his feelings for
Aja, and Aja tells Craig that she hopes that he wins (which kind of sucks for
Raya), and they share a moment.

Aw...isn't
that sweet. Well, at least it's sweet
until Craig starts hitting Aja up about who Jem really is. Aja, who is fiercely loyal to her band,
naturally refuses to tell Craig anything, and Craig nearly tells Aja to flock
off - but Aja surprises Craig by being understanding about it, and gently tells
Craig that she made a promise to Jem that she would never tell and she has to
honour it. Craig's temper fades, and
his heart melts into much over Aja's integrity, and the two of them play tonsil
hockey as swans swim underneath the bridge they're on. It's melodramatic, but how often does Aja
even get screentime let alone a love interest?

Aja's
integrity and compassion makes Craig so happy that he runs back to Eric's
office and tells him to flock off, informing him that he will NEVER help him
discover Jem's identity. This angers
Eric who is back to square one, and he makes the decision to try and work with
Raya once more. But he knows that Raya
is difficult to read and that one false move will scare her off forever.

But wait. Leave it to nasty Jetta to
come up with an evil plan. We don't
exactly know what that plan is yet, but it involves a lot of dosh (slang
term for money in the UK). And Pizzazz
and Roxy get a kick out of the fact that Jetta gets the dosh by pickpocketing
Eric! Yep, Jetta's a Misfit, all right.

While
Jetta's evil wheels of scheming are turning in her head, Jem and the Holograms
are gathered around a crowd of eager voters to watch the drum duel between
Craig and Raya. But of course, we can't
have a drum duel without a song to play along with. And I'll tell you...this season, the songs are definitely better.

It's
hard to determine whether Craig or Raya did the better job, but one thing I can
say is that "Beat This" is one hell of a song! I think the thing that is awesome about this
song is that it could also be sang by the Misfits with its lyrical content, but
yet Jem and the Holograms make this song all their own. That's a credit to Britta Phillips who
definitely shows her talent here. So
far, the music is a major improvement over Season 1. I hope this trend continues.

The
way the contest works is that everyone is given a ballot. They vote on which person they want to see
win. To prevent cheating, Jerrica has
arranged to have an independent ballot counting service come in to count every
vote, and the person with the most votes wins.
It's impossible to know which person did the best...but given that one
of the two finalists was made into a doll and the other one wasn't - well, that
should be a BIG clue.

While
the drum duel is going on, Jetta is meeting with some unsavoury characters on a
deserted Los Angeles city street. Armed
with Eric's cash, she bribes a local gang to do a task for her. She gives half the money to the gang now,
and will give them the other half when they provide proof that they did the
job. Uh-oh...this doesn't sound good.

The
group breaks into Alonso Nurseries and armed with baseball bats and other
assorted weapons, the group completely trash the place. Windows are smashed, flowers are uprooted,
topiaries are kicked (hmm, maybe they're related to Rio), and saplings are
squashed. Ah, so that's Jetta's
horrible plan. Destroy Raya's father's
business and scare Raya into taking Eric's offer and revealing Jem's secret so
that she can repair the damages. It's
cold, calculating, cruel...essentially, it's all Jetta. I get the feeling that not even Pizzazz and
Roxy would be that heartless. And
Stormer would outright stop this madness before it began. Jetta's pure sociopath. No wonder Roxy was right to be concerned!

Oh,
and for proof of their destruction? One
of the creeps picks up a rare black orchid and tells the others that she'll
love it. I'm sure we'll NEVER SEE THAT
ORCHID EVER AGAIN.

Daylight
falls and the damage to Alonso Nurseries is severe. Everything is completely destroyed and Papa Alonso is heartbroken
over the loss of his plants. It's so
heartbreaking to see Papa Alonso so hurt, and it only intensifies my hate of
Jetta even more. Raya is upset and
remarks that it will take a lot of money to fix all the damage, and she
remembers Eric's offer. Despite her
brother trying to get Raya to stick around, Raya makes the decision to take
Eric's offer in hopes that he will pay her enough to fix the damage that Jetta
was ultimately responsible for.

And
I am only guessing that Stormer has no clue what Jetta did because her main
concern is getting Craig to find out who Jem is. I'm assuming that the pair are at Stormer's house, which is on a
nice quiet street and looks nice and cozy!
Craig is confused as to why Stormer is not only determined to find out
Jem's identity, but why Stormer would allow herself to be taken advantage of by
the Misfits in the first place. Finally! Craig asks the
question that we've been wondering the last 27 episodes! Why would Stormer continue to stay with a
band that treats her like garbage?
Craig doesn't understand why Stormer insists that she would be nothing
without the Misfits - but then when Stormer tells Craig that the Misfits will
throw her out of the group if Craig doesn't discover Jem's secret, his big
brother instincts kick in, and he storms out of Stormer's house in an anger
filled beeline towards Misfits Music!

Craig
arrives at Misfits Music just as Raya is inside Eric's office about to accept
Eric's deal. And Craig happens to
overhear everything about how Raya's father's business was vandalized and how
she needs the money to fix it, and he hears Eric tell Raya that he will help
her if she tells him who Jem is. Craig
also happens to notice that Jetta is in the room wearing a gigantic flower in
her hair. A flower that happens to look
like a black orchid. I wonder if Raya
has noticed...

You
remember how I said that Raya had a fighter inside of her just waiting to come
out? At the sight of the black orchid
in Jetta's hair, Raya instantly grabs the orchid and tries to yank Jetta's hair
right out of her head! Raya is
absolutely pissed, and by all rights she has every right to be! Jetta is screaming in pain, but Raya refuses
to let go until Jetta confesses that she was the one responsible for destroying
her family business. Jetta relents and
Raya shoves her into Pizzazz and Roxy!
Okay, whereas I completely hate Jetta, I absolutely LOVE Raya! This girl can stay! To add insult to injury, Roxy snaps at Jetta
that her plan was a failure!

Raya
spews even more anger at Eric, telling him that she almost betrayed Jem, but
after seeing what kind of a slimeball he is, she will NEVER help him and that
he can flock himself! She storms out of
the office and past Craig, who by this point is ready to tear Eric apart
himself!

Instead,
he grabs a desk lamp and physically wraps it around Eric's neck!!! Wow, Season 2 of Jem is more intense than
the last season! Don't worry though,
Craig doesn't kill Eric. But Eric is so
frightened by Craig's temper that he is willing to give Craig anything he
wants. What Craig wants is lots of
money. Money that he plans to use
towards the repairs for Alonso Nurseries.

Craig
then sets his fury towards Pizzazz, Roxy, and Jetta, and angrily lets them know
that he thinks that they are garbage and that Stormer can do much better than
them, but also knows how much being a Misfit means to her, so he won't do
anything yet. But he angrily tears a
Misfit poster to shreds and warns them that if they hurt her in any way,
they'll have to answer to him. Now, I
don't think Craig would wrap a lamp around their necks as he actually does seem
to respect women, but he has made it perfectly clear that he won't tolerate
their abuse. And with that, Craig
leaves the building, making it clear that the Misfits can flock themselves.

But
not before running into Stormer, and reassuring her that everything is okay and
that he has made sure that nothing bad will happen. Amusingly, Eric, Pizzazz, Roxy, and Jetta are hiding behind a
doorway when Craig and Stormer are having their final conversation. Who's big and bad now, Misfits?

So,
with that, Craig makes a decision.
Knowing that he will end up going against his own sister's band if he
wins the contest, he announces that he is taking his name out of the running,
which devastates Aja. Aja wants to know
where Craig is going. Amusingly, Craig
announces that he is going back to Europe where he can avoid conflict. And, how many wars began in Europe over the
last two thousand years? Aja is about
to cry, but she understands Craig's decision, and gives him her scarf to
remember her by. But Raya is less than
happy, as it means that she will only win the contest by default. But Craig's final words in this episode are
directed to Raya, and he tells her that she has so much talent and heart to
share with the world and that Jem and the Holograms can help her a lot better
than they can help him.

Okay, can we keep Craig and kill off Rio?
Please?

So,
with Craig officially out of the contest, it's time to find out who would have
won. And well...let's just say that
Craig's decision to quit wouldn't have changed the outcome. Raya is the true winner of the contest and
she officially becomes the newest member of Jem and the Holograms! And while everyone in the crowd cheers the
new line-up for Jem and the Holograms, Papa Alonso cheers the loudest! Aw...I love Papa Alonso!

So,
Raya is now a Hologram. And right about
this time, Shana is really regretting walking away. After Liz Stratton once more spews her venom at Shana, Shana
finally remembers that she has a backbone and promptly tells Liz Stratton to
flock off, to choke on her opinions, and to strangle herself with orange
scarves! And the newly unemployed Shana
discusses her future with Anthony Julien and how uncertain it is. Anthony reminds Shana that she can always go
back to the band, but Shana figures that they've already picked their new
drummer and that they have no use for her any more.

Well,
she's right about the band choosing the new drummer, and as the press is
interviewing Kimber and Aja about the contest, a representative for the ballot
counting company approaches Jem looking for Jerrica to pay them. Jem ducks behind a curtain to do her
"Show's Over, Synergy" spiel, but when Raya sees a couple of
journalists approaching the curtain, she rushes towards Jem and warns her not
to change! Raya redirects the
journalists to another area of the room and Jem gives Raya a "what the
flock are you talking about" look.

In
a secluded area, Raya reveals to Jem, Kimber, and Aja that she has known that
Jem is really Jerrica Benton for several days now, and that she almost sold her
secret to Eric Raymond after Jetta arranged for her family's greenhouse to be
destroyed. Aja stares in silence -
still likely upset about Craig not being chosen - but she seems supportive of
Raya. And Kimber isn't shocked that
Eric would go to such lengths. But Jem
is very proud of Raya for not sharing the secret and reassures Raya that they
made the right choice in adding her to the band. Kimber even expresses delight over introducing Raya to
Synergy! Raya's just thrilled to be
accepted by the band, and I'm thrilled that a character with as much heart as
Raya is here to stay.

But
when the Holograms return to Starlight Mansion and see Anthony's car parked
outside, they are very confused. Jem,
Kimber, and Aja ask Anthony what's up and Anthony basically tells them that
Shana told Liz Stratton to flock herself.
The girls are thrilled by the news because apparently schadenfreude
isn't a part of their vocabulary. But
also they're thrilled because Shana can now come back to the group. Anthony reminds them that they said that
they didn't need her, but they tell Anthony that they only said this so that
Shana wouldn't give up on an opportunity and that they really miss her, which
causes Shana to come out of hiding and have a happy reunion with the rest of
the band.

Sadly, Raya doesn't see this happy reunion as being all that good news for her,
and she comes to the conclusion that being a member of Jem and the Holograms
for an hour is the best she can hope for.
She quietly leaves Starlight Mansion and goes back home where she is
happy to hear that Papa Alonso received an anonymous donation from a friend to
fix the damage to the nurseries. I'll
bet that friend was a man with blue hair named Craig.

Raya is sad though because with Shana rejoining the band, she feels that they
don't need her any longer. So, imagine
Raya's surprise when Jem, Kimber, Aja, Shana, and Rio arrive with their musical
instruments telling Raya that if their drummer didn't want to go to Starlight Mansion
that they would come to her instead.
Jem is insistent that Raya stay on as their drummer because they like
her and she's talented and she can rip flowers out of Jetta's head...oh,
wait. They didn't see that part.

Raya
is still unconvinced, but it's Shana who really brings her into the fold,
saying that now that Raya is their drummer, Shana can play the instrument that
she wanted to play in the first place, so all is right with the world.

And what a fitting note that the last song of the episode is a song called
"All's Right With The World".
Again, the song is fantastic, and I really have to say that it's a nice
video. It welcomes Raya to the band,
and I particularly love the scene in which Shana is the one to pull Raya onto
the train, as if she's giving her seal of approval to the fifth Hologram.

Okay,
seriously, if this is how Season 2 begins, I'm kind of looking forward to the
rest of it. Raya is a fantastic
addition to the Holograms, and I think she could bring some fire to the band
that can sometimes seem bland. Jetta is
an evil witch of a character, but fits in with the Misfits very well. And it's nice to see some characters get
more of a background story, and the Stormer/Craig story arc was very well done. The music has definitely improved from last
season, and all things considered, this two-part episode has very little wrong
with it.

Oh,
and your Jem Trivia for today? Raya is voiced by Linda Dangcil, whose
biggest role prior to Jem was on "The Flying Nun". Sadly, Dangcil passed away in 2009 at the
age of 67 from throat cancer.

Next
week, one of the Holograms in embroiled in a scandal! But, which one?

Thursday, September 29, 2016

I'm not going to really tag anyone here, because I don't think anyone should be forced to do this activity. By all means, if you want to take part, I encourage it! But, I think that we all need a reminder of all the good things that we like about ourselves. Some may constitute this as a bragging note, but I personally see it as an exercise in building up self-esteem, and self-worth...an exercise that some people should do to remind themselves that they are important and that they do have worth in this world.

I'm going to come up with sixteen things that make me...well...me. Even more importantly, I'm going to give sixteen reasons why I'm a great person to know...and hopefully, it will inspire all of you to look deep within yourselves and find those qualities that you like best about yourself.

So, let's begin.

01. I've always been obsessed with colour, and I like the fact that I'm not afraid to show them off.

02. I'd like to believe that when it comes down to common sense, I have quite a bit of it.

03. I have my own home. More importantly, I saved up for the down payment for four years to achieve it. I don't believe in free rides.

04. Although I am not religious, I do believe in trying to show goodwill towards others because I truly believe that good wins over evil.

05. I've been informed that I have some of the neatest handwriting they have ever seen.

06. I can come up with song parodies as fast as Weird Al Yankovic.

07. I'm a great speller as long as I can avoid typographical errors.

08. I always give 100% at work...though sometimes I wish it were noticed more...but hey, don't we all feel that way?

09. I always follow my own path and try not to follow fads. I don't need to buy the latest TV, I don't need to be attached to a Blackberry, and I always keep my underwear completely under my slacks or jeans. It's called UNDERwear for a reason.

10. I initially appear shy when people first meet me, but once I get to know you, it amazes even me how much I open up. I'm just a little bit socially awkward.

11. I've never smoked a cigarette, dropped acid, or done any serious out of control drinking.

12. I can do Christmas shopping on a budget and still manage to pick out perfect gifts.

13. I'm a great writer. Or, so I'd like to think I am.

14. I am a firm believer in standing up for what you believe in, and I most definitely do this. Sometimes I don't even think of any repercussions that might come from it until after I say it, which can be impulsive...but again, I make no apologies given that I suppressed myself for too long in my youth.

15. I enjoy writing this blog...mainly because I feel I can get my real feelings out a lot better through written works than if I try to talk to people face to face.

16. Although it has taken me years to realize this...I have some awesome people in my life who will truly stand by me. The only thing I wish was that some of them were a lot closer to me, but I know that regardless of geographical location, that they'll always be there for me...and it makes me smile.

1940 - The Tripartite Pact is signed by Germany,
Italy, and Japan in Berlin

1954 - "Tonight Starring Steve Allen"
debuts on NBC - the show would later come to be known as "The Tonight
Show", whose subsequent hosts would include Johnny Carson, Jay Leno, Conan
O'Brien, and Jimmy Fallon

1956 - USAF Captain Milburn G. Apt dies shortly
after exceeding Mach 3 in the Bell X-2 craft when the craft goes out of control

1959 - Typhoon Vera strikes Japan, killing five
thousand people

1961 - Sierra Leone joins the United Nations

1965 - Silent film star Clara Bow passes away at
the age of 60

1968 - "Hair" opens at the Shaftesbury
Theatre in London and would host nearly 2,000 performances over the next five
years

2000 - The first Olympic medal for tae kwon do
was won by Michail Mourutsos during the Sydney Games

2001 - Fourteen people are killed and four more
injured when a man goes on a shooting rampage in Zug, Switzerland; the gunman
would later take his own life

2008 - P!nk's "So What" reaches #1 on
the Billboard Charts

2015 - The television series "CSI: Crime
Scene Investigation" airs its final episode after a fifteen year run on
CBS

And while she is NOT the subject of today's blog, her birthday happens to be
today's Tuesday Timeline date. September 27, 1996.

But
what in the world happened on September 27, 1996 in pop culture? Well, at the time, I was fifteen years old
so I do remember that day well. Aside
from the birth of my niece, there was something else that I was looking forward
to.

It
was the debut of a television show that as I mentioned before was quite magical
in a way. And considering that
Halloween is coming up next month, I figure that now is a good time to bring up
the fact that this television show was filled with magic and witchcraft, and
its storylines often left the viewers feeling spellbound.

It's
a television show that was based on a comic book character that debuted in
Archie Comics in 1962, and while this character once had her own cartoon show
in the 1960s and 1970s, this television series was the first time that the
character had been seen in live action - well, aside from the introductory made
for television film that aired earlier in 1996.

Yes,
it was twenty years ago today that "Sabrina: The Teenage Witch"
debuted on ABC! Twenty years! My goodness, I feel old just thinking about
it!

And, yes...I will definitely admit to watching this show - well, at least for
the first couple of seasons anyway.
What was interesting about this show's run was that it ended up running
for seven seasons total - but on two different networks. From 1996-2000, the show was part of ABC's
TGIF line-up, but beginning in 2000, the show switched to the WB Network for
the remainder of its run. The final
episode of the series aired on April 24, 2003.

Mind
you, by April 2003, Sabrina wasn't a teenager any longer. Neither was Melissa Joan Hart who played the
role of Sabrina (she was 20 when the show began). But yet somehow, I think that Melissa Joan Hart was a good choice
for the role. After all, the Sabrina
comic book series (at least the one that was illustrated by Dan DeCarlo) showed
Sabrina as being a positive, caring, happy-go-lucky character. And certainly Melissa was capable of playing
such a role. Heck, she was the star of "Clarissa
Explains It All" way back in the mid-1990s!

And
I have to say that for the most part, the show stuck with the formula that
worked in the comic book series. Rather
than having Sabrina living in Riverdale with Archie, Betty, and Veronica, she
lived in the fictional community of Westbridge, Massachusetts. And the reason for why she has magical
powers is because her father's side of the family come from a long line of
witches and warlocks, dating back to the Salem Witch Trials period.

Sabrina
discovers her magical powers on the morning of her sixteenth birthday when she
finds herself levitating over her bed.
And after talking with her two aunts, Hilda (Caroline Rhea) and Zelda
(Beth Broderick), she comes to accept the fact that she can now cast
spells. She also comes to learn that
the family pet, a cat named Salem (Nick Bakay) can talk. In reality, Salem was once a powerful
warlock who had a spell put on him that transformed him into a cat because his
power got the better of him.

TRIVIA: Beginning
in 1996, all Sabrina comics that featured Salem changed his colour from orange to
black to fit the television show better.

Of
course, Sabrina had more to worry about than trying to control her powers - the
first three seasons of this show clearly showed that she COULDN'T. She also had to balance her witch life from
her normal life, and when you're a high school student, that's not exactly easy
to do. It's especially hard when you're
falling in love with your crush, Harvey Kinkle (Nate Richert), but you're
competing against Libby Chessler (Jenna Leigh Green) for his attention, that's
definitely not a good feeling.

And certainly on Sabrina's first day of knowing that she's a witch, she never
expected to get so angry with Libby that she accidentally transforms her into a
pineapple in front of the whole school!
Fortunately, Hilda and Zelda come up with a plan to restore Libby back
to normal while never revealing Sabrina's secret. It's quite complicated to explain, but the pilot episode is where
it all happened.

Now,
over the course of the show, characters came and went. Melissa Joan Hart and Nick Bakay were the
only ones to stay for the whole series.
Caroline Rhea left the series to host her own talk show, with Beth
Broderick following suit. Nate Richert
came and went. And new cast members
joined the show at various points including Martin Mull (Mr. Kraft), Soleil
Moon Frye (Roxy), Elisa Donovan (Morgan), David Lascher (Josh), and Dylan Neal
(Aaron). And when the show switched
from ABC to the WB, it was also a turning point for Sabrina as she left high
school and started attending college.
But, that's really all I can say as I haven't seen too many episodes of
the last three seasons of the show. You
had to pay the cable company extra to get the WB, and it just wasn't worth the
money. Which I suppose is why the WB is
now known as the CW.

I
have to say that overall the show did stay true to the comics - well, the first
few years anyway. And while the show
was never really destined to win any Emmy Awards, you do have to admit that it
was a show that could appeal to all audiences with its family friendly
storylines and magical whimsy. Consider
it a 1990s version of "Bewitched" if you will...only Sabrina never
had to wiggle her nose to cast a spell.

Besides, the television show launched a comic
book reboot, a series of youth novels, a cartoon series, and even a few video
games! And at the time it was airing on
TGIF, it was the highest rated series in the block - and this was during a time
in which "Boy Meets World", "Family Matters" and "The
Hughleys" were airing alongside the show.
That's quite impressive, no matter what your feelings were about the
show.

Personally, I liked it a lot. But then
again, I like almost anything associated with Archie Comics. I wonder if the "Riverdale" series
that is set to air on the CW in early 2017 will have the same success as
Sabrina did, given that it seems to be wanting to go after a completely
different audience. Who knows, really?

Monday, September 26, 2016

It's
the final Monday in September, which means that it's time for the final Munsch
Monday...at least for now.

I
may revisit this author at another time in the future, but for now, let's
savour this moment while we can.

I
have to say that a good 90% of Robert Munsch's stories are hysterical to read
and usually involve stories that expect you to believe the unbelievable. From mud puddles jumping on top of you from
trees to getting into a fight with your principal and teacher over a snowsuit,
to making yourself invisible after attempting to scrub off super indelible
markers from your skin, it's safe to say that most of his stories are fun tales
that suspend reality.

But
perhaps one of Munsch's greatest stories that he has ever written comes from a
place in which he was probably at his saddest.

If
you read his official biography at robertmunsch.com, you'll read one sad
footnote amongst all of the fun stories that he has shared over his
career. When Robert and his wife were
trying to start a family of their own, they had two children that were
stillborn. And the tragedy devastated
both of them - which lead to the couple's eventual decision to adopt
children.

But
if there could be a positive to come out of the tragedy of losing two children,
it was this. Robert wrote a song about
his lost children, and the song was called "Love
You Forever".

"I'll love you forever
I'll like you for always

As long as I'm living

My baby you'll be"

It
didn't occur to him that song would one day become his biggest selling book -
one that has been loved from generation to generation since it was originally
published in 1986.

"Love
You Forever" is the tale of a mother and her son, and how strong that
mother's love grows with each passing year - no matter what sort of trouble the
child seems to get into.

You
know the kind of trouble I mean.
Flushing Daddy's wristwatch down the toilet, or tracking mud through the
kitchen, or sticking gum all over the place, or bringing in strange animals as
pets. These are all things that would
most definitely test the patience of any parent.

And
yet every single night, the mother would sneak into the room of her son, pick
him up, cradle him, and sing the "Love You Forever" song to him,
showing him just how much she loved him - even if he wasn't conscious at the
time.

Even when the young man grew older and moved out of the house, she would always
come over every single night and sing him the "Love You Forever"
song, even if it meant that she grabs a ladder, climbs up to his bedroom window
and picks him up even though he likely outweighs her by a hundred pounds!

Okay,
so maybe there was a little bit of Munsch humour added in. Not a whole lot, but a little.

Now, here's where the story
gets heartbreaking. Eventually, the
mother of our tale starts to get frailer, and although it's not really implied
in the story, it's eluded that she has some sort of illness that prevents her
from remembering the song that she used to sing to her son. By that time, the son is now a full-grown
adult with a family of his own, and in gratitude for all that she has done for
him, he sings her the "Love You Forever" song with a little tweak in
the lyrics..."I'll love you forever
I'll like you for always

As long as I'm living

My Mommy you'll be"

Are your eyes dry yet? Give me a moment
to dry mine.

I guess the moral of "Love You Forever" is that a parent's love for a
child never dies. I truly believe that
to be true even long after a parent departs this world and leaves their
children behind.

And
while I am lucky enough to still have both of my parents, I know that one day
I'm going to come to the grim reality that they are not always going to be
there...but even though there may come a day in which they are no longer here,
I know that their love will never truly die.
We carry that love with us and pass it on to future generations - well,
those of us who are lucky enough to have children, that is. Until then, if you're lucky enough to still
have your parents in your life, spend time with them. Let them know how much you love them. Be there for them.

Saturday, September 24, 2016

Have
you ever heard of the phrase "old soul"? It's a term that someone might use to describe a person who
either acts as though they are older than they actually are, or it's a term
that is used to describe someone whose morals and values might seem more mature
than the average person.

It's a term that I have heard many times.
And the reason is because I feel as though I have an old soul.

Growing up in small town Ontario, I always had great difficulty relating to
people my own age. I tried to be friendly
with them, and sometimes they would respond back in kind, but when it comes
down to it, I always found myself on the outside looking in. It wasn't really anything that I feel that I
did, it's just that I couldn't relate to them as much as I could adults.

I suppose part of the reason for my thinking could have been due to the fact
that I wasn't really exposed to many children when I was younger. In the first five years of my life, I think
my family moved to four different neighbourhoods, so I never really had a
chance to really get to know people as we were constantly moving. And by the time my family finally settled on
the street that I called home for fourteen years, there were no kids my age on
the street at all. It was 85% elderly
residents.

I mean,
don't get me wrong. Many of those
elderly people were nice people, and many of them gave me extra treats on
Halloween whenever I went trick-or-treating as for many years I was the only
child on the street. But it made for a
rather lonely childhood at times.

It
wasn't until I started elementary school that I finally got the chance to
interact with people my own age.
Unfortunately, the majority of the kids in my class already had a major
head start in social skills than I had.
Many of them came from neighbourhoods with lots of children, or they
were in daycare programs that allowed them access to other kids their age. I never really had that experience, and I
think it ended up being detrimental to trying to get along with people my own
age.

Even at 35, I can probably count all the friends who were born the same year I
was on both hands. I just find it
difficult to initiate conversation with people near my age because I feel as
though I have nothing to offer in terms of conversation. And that's nobody's fault. It's just the way that I feel and my own
individual experiences.

When I was a kid, it seemed to me that most of my friends back in those days
were fully-grown adults. I found that I
could have better conversations with adult figures than I could with people my
own age. The guy who used to deliver
bread to the convenience store was my friend.
The bank teller at the Bank of Montreal was my friend. Any random person on the street that was
older than me, I considered a friend.
Of course, I should reiterate that I just didn't go around the streets
of my hometown talking to random strangers.
My parents would have never allowed that.

Thing is, I don't know why I found it easier to talk to adults than I did
talking with people my own age. Maybe
it was because I saw adults as being protective figures, and that by talking to
them that they wouldn't be mean to me.
And 99% of the time, that was my experience with them. We won't discuss the mean neighbours across
the street from the house I grew up in.

But
ultimately, I think it all came down to what I was exposed to as a child. And as it so happened, most of my childhood
experiences were around adult figures.

Even
having siblings that were much older than I was sort of explained my
gravitation towards adults instead of kids my age. Because their friends were much older than I was, I was exposed
to older people moreso than I was people of my own age group. And even when I was in situations where
there were kids my own age, I still felt more comfortable hanging around the
adults. That was just how I felt, and
in many ways that's how I still feel.

Now, do I wish that things were different?
In one way, I do. I hated being
the kid that never fit in with the other kids at school, and I longed to have
people accept me for who I was no matter what my age was. But in many ways, I was a 50-year-old soul
in a 10-year-old body, and I suppose it would be difficult for the average
10-year-old to find anything in common with a child who felt more open with
adults. Again, that's not anyone's
fault. That was just the way it was.

On that same token, I'm glad that I can relate well with adults because it
taught me that somewhere underneath my goofy exterior was a responsible and
mature person who somehow could interact with adults and not feel pressured to
get off their lawn. And as I've come to
realize just based on the experiences I've had with my own peers, not everyone
born the same year as me end up becoming all that mature.

Still...sometimes having an old soul can be as
much of a curse as it is a blessing. It
all depends on how you see it.